Tissues, such as cortical bone, tendons, ligaments, menisci and periosteum, have short T2 relaxation components that need an ultra-short TE (UTE) MR imaging pulse sequence for their detection. The basic 3D UTE pulse sequence involves using a short RF excitation pulse and center out radial imaging with options that suppress fat and/or long T2 components. Compared to 2D UTE sequences, partial saturation by multi-slice imaging of short T2 components are minimized. However, known MR imaging systems typically use a 3D radial (e.g., center out) scan having isotropic resolution and thus require a prolonged long scan time and with limited in-plane resolution. A system according to invention principles addresses these deficiencies and related problems.